It's Just An Hour

If it's just an hour, why is it so hard to make the adjustment to Daylight Savings Time? Maybe it has to do with whether you wake up when it's dark or you wake up when the sun has come up. This morning I did both. I woke up at 5:30 (it was still dark), fed the cat, and went back to bed. The next thing I knew it was 8:30 and the sun was shining. The cat is still asleep two hours later so I think she is confused as well. I hope your morning is off to a good start with no confusion as to what time it is!

Earlier this week I started the gold flowers on the T pear. Amy chose the most beautiful Gloriana silk to use for the first step in this flower. It is so lovely with its subtle shading. The second step in the flower is to add accents of an amber colored Kreinik. It took several nights of stitching to finish step one and two of the flowers. The third step is to add Lazy Daisy stitches on top of the satin stitches. The fourth step is to add French knots to the center.

Honestly, I think if I were stitching it again, I would not stitch the Lazy Daisies. The satin stitches in the Gloriana silk are so beautiful and take some time to stitch properly. Then you cover them up with the Lazy Daisies. I think I may have liked it better to just fill the center with the amber colored French knots.  But, the effect of the raised Lazy Daisies is very nice and I am not unhappy that I stitched it according to Amy's stitch guide.

Now, it's on to the M pear and lots of stripes and interesting stitches and threads. A nice challenge for a Sunday afternoon!

In eagle nest news, there was a dramatic turn of events at the Norfolk nest this week. Early in the week we were hoping for eggs to be laid and Female #3 was showing signs that the big event was imminent. But, out of the blue on Wednesday evening, a 4th female attempted to enter the nest while Dad Norfolk was there and quite a scuffle took place. Dad let her know in no uncertain terms that she was not welcome. Female #3 was photographed earlier that day engaged in an aerial fight with this same Female #4. Their talons were locked together in combat as they flew over the gardens. The photos are extraordinary. Territorial fights are sometimes brutal to watch and I had a front row seat this week. It is probably a blessing that no eggs had been laid because they would surely have been broken as Dad defended the nest on Wednesday evening.

Now, what is sad and so ironic is that Female #3 has not been seen since Thursday morning and it appears Female #4 has prevailed as of last evening. Dad allowed her to stay at the nest last night and mated with her this morning. I think Dad is determined that he will have eggs in that nest this year and he is, at this point, not too picky as to who will lay those eggs. I had to laugh at myself this morning because the first message I looked at on my phone when I woke up was from the Norfolk Botanical Garden alerting me to the fact that Dad had mated with #4 at 6:50 AM this morning. I signed up for the text alerts when some momentous event occurs at the nest such as an egg being laid. The arrival of this new female this week is definitely a momentous event and those of us who watch the nest (15,000 at one point this week) have been waiting to see if Dad would accept this new female. Looks like he has as of this morning! It is hard to remove human emotion from the events at the nest this year and to step back and watch Nature truly take its course knowing we have no control over what happens there. Watching the nest is hands-down better than a lot of what is on television these days!

I didn't mean to go to such lengths about the nest activities this week but it was quite a week! I watched the birds in my own backyard yesterday. The cedar waxwings are here at the moment devouring every berry they can find on the Carolina Cherry trees. I heard a strange sound while out on the patio and realized the cedar waxwings were swarming all over the Carolina Cherry next door and the berries were hitting the tin roof and making quite the racket. These birds will probably only be here a few more days before they move on but I always enjoy their brief yearly visits.

Enough of the birds, it's time to get back to some stitching!

Have a great week - enjoy being Irish even if it's only for one day this week!